System for the automatic control and distribution of water for irrigation.



N. S. TWIPORD, DEGD. G. A. TWIFORD, ADMINISTRATRIX. SYSTEM FOR THE AUTOMATIC CONTROL ANDDISTRIBUTION OF WATER FOR IRRIGATION.

APPLICATION TILED THE. 4, 1907.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

Wizmzm 522% N. S. TWIPORD, DEGD.

G. A. TWIFORD v ADMINISTRATRIX. 1 SYSTEM FOR THE AUTOMATIC CONTROL AND DISTRIBUTION OF WATER FOR IRRIGATION.

u APYPLIOATION PILEDPBB. 4, 1907. Patented'Apr- 6 1909.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2,

lflifz eases l'nven g @J/E VL Ji-;li.'=i.AS S. 'ITVIFORD, Ul" POMONA, CALIFORNIA; GRAUE A. TWIFORD ADMINISTRATR IX OF SAID NICHOLAS S.

TWIFORD DECEASED.

SYSTEM FOR TI'IE AUTOMATIC CONTROL AND DISTRIBUTEON 0F WATER FOR IRRIGATION.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented April 6, 1909.

Application filed February Q, 1907. Serial No. 355,758.

In irrigating land, it is very desirable that h the stream of Water distributed to the irrigating furrows by the attendant shall remain of the same volume throughout the entire )eriod that the Water is allowed to flow. .f a variable head of water is admitted to the furrows, unsatisfactory results ensue. Some means otkeeping the flow of Wateruniform at the volume the irrigator may desire, is a need which practical irrigators realize is essential to good irrigating and economical use of water, especially in orchard work and furrow irrigation.

W hen a stream of Water is distributed upon the land to he irrigated, any decrease in its volume will cause it to ,fiow over less land than intended, or to not run so far in the furrows; an increase in its volume causes it to flow over more land, or'to run farther in the furrows. These fluctuations give the irrigator trouble, causing imperfect irrigation and the loss of Water and time. The uneven flow is the greatest trouble in irrigating from reservoirs of small capacity as compared with the requirements of thesystem, for the reason that a smallreservoir such. as a small land-owner may he able to construct, and

wvhich is sufficient to store water enough for one irrigation for lns land, Wlll necessar lylower its water level as the water is drawn from it for irrigation, sothat at the beginning of the Work a strong flow of Water will occur, and as the water lowers in the reservoir the force of the flow will decrease, thus requiring attention on the part of the irrigator to open larger inlets to the furrows from the main ditch in order that the same amount of water may go through such furrows as originally provided for; or, the gate at the reservoir may have to be opened more widely as the head of water in said reservoir decreases. 'lhere is at present no irrigating system in which the trouble thus arising can be avoided.

it is one of the objects of this invention to devise a means oi keeping the flow of the stream of water from such a variable head uniform throughout the period of irrigation at the volume the irrigator may desire. allowing the irrigator to vary said volume as he wills, so that he will have complete control of the water and can depend upon uniformity of irrigation in accordance with the way which he determines upon, and this *ithout requiring his constant attention.

\Vhen the irrigator applies stream 01 water to thelanil in many smaller streams, these streams are ailected by the change in volume of one another. If some are increased in volume it diminishes the rest, and if some are decreased in volume this increases the others.

it is an object of this invention to prevent such action of one stream on another.

Another object of the invention is to enable ranch-owners to construct pressure lines for distributing purposes, of cement pipe no matter what the incline of the pipe-line may be. Under former systems the use of cement pi e for pressure lines where the incline pipe having hydrants with valves thereon I to maintain pressure in said ipe. I Fig. 2 is a fragmental, sectional detai of the upper portion of the same. Fig. 3. is a fragmental plan view, partly in section, of the parts shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is an elevation from the right of Figs. and 3, omitting the reservoir. Fig. 5 is another view of the parts shown in Figs. 1 and 2 and illustrates the operation when the reservoir has a heavy head or great depth of water. Fig. 6 is a fragmental sectional elevation. of portions at the head ofthe system showing a modified form of apparatus for controlling the flow. Fig. 7 shows the upper'portion of a system a plied with a series of regulating chainhers, toe inlet-s of one or more of which constitute the outlets of the preceding chamber.

' with the rise and fall of the water level in the chamber. The gate '9 is operable by handle 12 to open and close the. gate 6 more or'l'ess as maybe required to supply to conduit13' the desired volume of water.

14 designates hydrants controlled by:

valves 15 through which water may be delivered directly to the irrigating furrows.

in the drawings, parts which are ractically duplicates of each other are 11K icated I by the same character with the additionof an exponent. i

The character 13 designates a pressure conduit -made of concrete pipe, and the regulating chambers 4. and d constitute means interposed in the system between the reservoir and hydrants, as. 14", 14", 14, to limit the flow to the hydrants. The regulating. chamber 4 limits the flow to the hydrants 14c, 14, and to the regulating chamber l, which latter chamber in turn limits the flow to the succeeding hydrants. The portions of the pressure pi cs 13 and 13 between the regulating cham er a and the closed end 16 of the system are capable of withstanding a limited pressure.

When the pressure in the reservoir or tank 1 is high the amount of water flowing. therefrom through'the inlet 5 will flow more rapidly than will be the casewhen the level of the tankor reservoir is lowered. When the level of the water the tank or reser voir 1 is high, as indicated in Fig. 5, the flow through the inlet 5 will be under considerable pressure and will therefore tend to supply a lar or amount of water to the regulating cham er than in the'case illustrated fallen. The rise of the water in the chamber operates the ate to reduce the area of the inlet of the chamber and thereby regulates the supply.

The irrigator, by means of the'handle 12, will set the gate 9 at a point where the pressure of the water in the regulating chamber will deliver approximately the stream he desires; In case the o eration of irrigating begins withf the level of the Water high, as indicated 5, the water will flow with considers able orce into the regulating chamber and 6.5

raise the level of the water therein, thus eraser 7 is a conduit connecting the weir.

'ing chamber forms the inlet for th lowering the gate 8 and shutting oil some of stant at a oint where the outflow through outlet 6- wil be that required by the irrigator. '1 falls, the flow throu 'h the inlet 5 is dimin- As the Water in the tank or reservoir ished and the water e'vel in the regulating chamber falls, thus lowering the float 11 and raising the gate 8 to admit more water so as to approximately maintain the requisite outflow through 6.

Under ordinary circumstances the use of a single regulating chamber will give suflicient regularity to the stream, but in case it is desiredto avoid any fluctuations in the stream a plurality of regulating chambers, as shown in Fig. 7 may be employed. It-is to be understood that the conduit through which the final delivery is made to the irrigating system may be an open ditch, not shown, as well as the pipe 13.

17 designates a weir chamber provided with a weir 18 by which the irrigator can determine the amount of water that is flowing through-the regulatin chamber. By this indicating means he. Wi i be enabled to accurately establish the volume of flow that he desires for irrigation urposes'; the same. being once determined y experiment, can afterward be determined by inspection of the 19 is a gate at the outlet 20 of the reservoir by which the irrigator may regulate the volume of water admitted to the re ulating chamber in the first instance. In theform shown in Fig. 7 the gate 12 serves as ail indicator of the amount. of water that allowed to flow through the outlet 6". I

In Fig. 7, the outlet from the first girlatcond,

ice

and the outlet for the second form he inlet for the third regulating chamber/"and the secondgate 8 at once regulates'tlie dis 1 charge from the regulating chambers and,

the supply to the regulating chamber 4:, while the gate 8 regulates the discharge from the regulating chamber a and the su ply to the regulating chamber 4". The final.

hat I claim is v 1. In an irrigating system, thecombina re ulation is acconiip'lished by the gategffl in Fig. 2 Where the level of the water has tion of a chamber having an inlet and an outlet, a conduit connecting the reservoir with the inlet of said chamber, 9. ate to regulate the inlet, a gate to regulate t e outlet, and means operable by the rise and fall.

of'water in said chamber to close and open the inletgatc in correspondence with the 1858 and fall of the water level in the charm 2. A water system proyid ed' .with' .a p1urality of chambers communicating'with each other successively, and each rovided with an mist and an outlet, gates tor contro g.

rap

emeei the inlets reepeetiveiy, end means in. the re e ective ehembere for epeiating said gates,

t' e outlet for one or more of time chambers being tactically the inlet for the chamber euceee ing the seine.

3. An irrigating system comprising it chamber having an inlet and an outiet, the inlet communicating with the reservoir, e gate to regulate the inlet, e ate to regulate the outlet, means 0 emble %y the rise and fall of Water in eei chamber to ciose and 0 en the inletate in correspondence with tne rise and tel of the water levei in the ehemoer, and & Weir chamber with a weir therein to receive end discharge the ater delivered at the outlet.

4. An irrigating s stem comprising e chamber hevmg en in et and an outlet, the inlet communicating with the reservoir, e gate to regulate the inlet, a ate to regulate the outlet, means operebie y the rise and -the volume of Water fall of wetter in said eiiember to close and seen the inletate in eorieepondlenee with t a rise and fai of the water level in the chamber, and indieetiiz means to indicate owing through the outlet.

5. An irrigating system comprising the combination, of a chamber having an inlet and an outlet, means to regulate theiniet, means to regulate the outlet, and means 0perable by the rise and fall of Water in seld chamber controlling the in1et-reguieting means. i

In testimony whereof, i have hereunto set my hand at kPemone, Califomist this 26th day of January 1907.

NICHOLAS S. TWEFORD.

in PEESQHCGDi I R. B. SWATMAN, G. A. TWI QRD. 

